


Burcyan: That Night In The Crater on Mandalore

by ProjectOrthus



Series: The Weight of Mandalore [4]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Death Watch (Star Wars), Declarations Of Love, F/F, Lesbian Bo-Katan Kryze, Love, Love Confessions, Mandalorian Armor (Star Wars), Planet Mandalore (Star Wars), Romance, Sundari, mandoa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-18
Updated: 2021-03-18
Packaged: 2021-03-27 01:20:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,790
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30114960
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ProjectOrthus/pseuds/ProjectOrthus
Summary: Bo-Katan Kryze and Ursa Wren are on a reconnaissance mission for Death Watch, stationed in a crater by Sundari. As their mission comes to a close and the sun goes down, they discuss what they have left to fight for, and feelings that both have had for quite a long time now.
Relationships: Bo-Katan Kryze & Ursa Wren, Bo-Katan Kryze/Ursa Wren
Series: The Weight of Mandalore [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2201613
Kudos: 5





	Burcyan: That Night In The Crater on Mandalore

The sun was setting on Mandalore. The last rays of light reflected off of the domed city of Sundari, making it shine yellow and red. A faint breeze blew grains of white sand gently across the ground, settling against the edge of a crater, just within viewing distance of Sundari. In the crater sat two women, suits sealed and helmets on, lying in the sand, eyes fixed on Sundari. They had been there for hours. 

Joining Death Watch had been an impulse decision on Bo-Katan’s part, fuelled by blind anger towards her sister’s political choices. When Pre Vizsla offered her a spot beside him as lieutenant, Bo had accepted without hesitation. And in that second, she lost the only family she had left: Satine and Korkie. Bo pretended like she was fine. Like she didn’t think about her sister and nephew every night, wishing that things were different. She had to hate them. It was almost expected of her. But she couldn’t find it in herself to hate them fully. So when Pre said that they were going to kill the Duchess, Bo had to smile and nod, pretending that the thought of it didn’t send a stab of panic and pain through her. 

Her one lifeline had been her friendship with Ursa Wren. They had a lot in common. Ursa too had abandoned her blood family for Death Watch, taking a good chunk of her clan with her and progressing rapidly to third in command, right under Bo. Because of that, they spent quite a lot of time together, in battle and otherwise, and they got to know each other very well. Quickly, they became close. They would spend the days carrying out spying missions on Sundari and the nights sitting by the campfire talking about life before Death Watch. To Bo, Ursa was the only person she could truly trust with her feelings. She hadn’t told the other woman about her lingering love of Satine, but part of her almost felt brave enough to say it, now. 

They lay side by side in the crater. Bo’s elbows were getting sore from propping herself up. And the sun was nearly set. 

“It’s getting too dark to keep watch of the city gates,” Bo said, glancing over at Ursa. “We should head back to camp soon.” She rolled onto her back to give her arms a break, staring up at the night sky. 

Ursa shifted herself into a sitting position, looking down at Bo. “The night is young, and we’re not needed back urgently. Perhaps we could stay here a while. Besides, you seem to have gotten yourself comfortable.”

Bo shifted slightly in the sand, getting comfortable. She pat the sand beside her. “Well, come on. The stars are coming out.” 

Ursa sighed, laying herself down on the sand beside Bo-Katan. She gazed up at the stars through her helmet visor. The sky was now nearly completely dark, and the stars over Mandalore had always been stunning to look at. The pair were silent for quite a while. 

“Do you ever regret joining Death Watch, Ursa?” Asked Bo. 

This question took Ursa by suprise. “No. Not at all. Why would I?”

“I don’t know,” Bo sighed. “I just sometimes wish that things were different. That I didn’t have to do all of this.”

”Bo, if things were different, we wouldn’t know each other,” said Ursa. She turned her head to look over at Bo. “And neither of us would want that.”

“Can I tell you something?” Bo asked. It was late. She was tired. Wasn’t thinking straight. She never fully did around Ursa those days. Something about the woman exhilarated her, made her anxious and elated at the same time. So Bo decided to take a risk. Rip the bandaid off. She needed to know that she could trust Ursa with anything. 

“Of course,” said Ursa. 

Bo sighed. “Part of me would be devastated to kill Satine. Don’t get me wrong, I hate everything she’s doing, but... She’s my sister. We used to be so close.” She glanced at Ursa. “Tell anyone and I kill you, got it?” 

Ursa paused, then burst into laughter, a hand grabbing Bo’s arm. Bo tensed up. 

“Bo, of course I won’t tell anyone! There’s no reason to sound so nervous about it, of course you still love Satine. She’s your sister!” Ursa’s laugh died down to a chuckle as her tone shifted, becoming more gentle. She propped herself up on an elbow so she could face Bo better, gripping her arm. “You’re fighting the ideals, not the leader. And that’s admirable. Most of us here left behind our family in order to fight for Mandalore. But Bo, you have a family here too. With us.”

Bo wished she could see Ursa’s face. Over the past weeks it had become a comfort to her, a constant. Almost something that grounded her. She shifted the arm that Ursa was grasping, slipping it away from her grip so that she could place her hand in Ursa’s. Ursa looked down at their hands momentarily before looking back up at Bo. 

“Ursa-“ Bo couldn’t get the words past her lips. No matter how badly she wanted to say them. Emotions had never been a strong point of hers. Anything felt she usually converted to anger or pushed away. So she fell silent, frustrated. 

Ursa turned her gaze to the stars again, smiling beneath her helmet. She could tell that something was on Bo-Katan’s mind. She knew it was best not to press these matters, to let her speak naturally. Bo had a... reputation for being quick to anger. And Ursa didn’t want to spoil this moment. “It’s beautiful, tonight. Almost makes up for the fact that this planet is dying.” 

The women lay there, hand in hand, gazing at the stars. Eventually, Ursa spoke again. 

“You know, it’s moments like these that make me grateful for joining Death Watch,”

This caught Bo off guard, slightly. “What do you mean?”

“Well, I believe in what we’re fighting for of course, that’s the reason I joined in the first place, but our friendship has given me a reason to keep fighting,” said Ursa.

“What about your clan?” Bo asked. “Aren’t you fighting for them?”

”Of course I am,” Ursa said. “But...” She looked over at Bo. “I’m fighting for you too.”

Bo-Katan took a moment to process this. She hoped that Ursa meant what she thought she meant. “Ursa, I left everything behind. Everyone who loved me, I lost.”

Ursa squeezed her hand gently. “You’re not losing me.”Now what did THAT mean? Bo’s head raced with thoughts. Did she just-

“You’re my dearest friend, Bo, and a wonderful Lieutenant,” Ursa continued. Bo’s heart sank. So she didn’t mean it. But Ursa wasn’t done. “You know, war is an interesting thing. We might die at any given minute and yet we still press on. Isn’t that funny? We’ve left behind everything and yet we still press on.”

“Because it’s all we have left to do,” Bo raised their hands, slightly putting her other hand over Ursa’s. Now, Ursa’s hand was clasped between Bo’s. “And you- are all I have left.” She gave Ursa a meaningful look through her visor. “Do you... know what I mean?”

Ursa took a moment to respond. “I think I might but I’m not sure...” Her voice was hesitant. “Bo...”

Bo brought Ursa’s hand to her heart, pressing it there against the beskar firmly. “Ni copaanir kar’tayl gar darasuum, Ursa. You’re the only person who sees me as more than a weapon. The only person I have left to fight for.” 

If Bo hadn’t been wearing beskar, Ursa could probably have felt her heartbeat pounding under her palm. Under her helmet, Ursa was beaming. In a rare moment of lost composure, she threw her arms around Bo, making them both fall back into the sand. Bo was momentarily taken aback, but then returned the hug, holding Ursa tightly to her. 

“Bo-Katan, ni kar’tayl gar darasuum,” Ursa breathed through the comm link connecting their helmets. 

“Really?” Asked Bo. Her head was spinning. And she flet a bit pathetic. She was supposed to be the Lieutenant of Death Watch, Pre’s right hand man, and leader of the Nite Owls, and yet now she was reduced to a soft, vulnerable mess. 

Ursa nodded. “I used to think that Clan Kryze was just stuck up politicians before I met you! Probably because I had only heard of your sister. And then I met you, and suddenly Kryze was the only name worth knowing.”

”What happened to ‘my dearest friend’?” Teased Bo, still in a state of mild shock. 

“You’re still that,” Ursa said. She pulled away from the hug slightly, looking through her visor at Bo-Katan. She wished she could see her face. But she was so breathless that taking off her helmet was far from a good idea. So she rolled on top of Bo, holding her tightly. Then, Ursa bumped her helmet gently against Bo’s. “Now you just know that I love you.”

Bo’s heart sang as she looked up at Ursa. She held her tightly, not daring to loosen her grip. They had hugged before, but this was different. This hug had a meaning that neither knew was there before. 

Bo-Katan’s comm link buzzed. “Kriff!” She swore, “Ursa, get off me, quickly.”

Ursa rolled off of Bo, sitting down in the sand composing herself as Bo activated the hologram of Pre Vizsla in front of her. It cast pale blue light over her helmet. “Yes, sir?” 

“Where are you two?” Asked Pre. “You should have been back half an hour ago.”

Bo glanced at Ursa. “We’re just about to head back. A few more ships docked in Sundari, we thought we would keep an eye on them. We’ll be there within the hour.”

“I expect you to be more timely next time,” Pre said. “We will be waiting.”

The hologram vanished, the light fading and leaving Bo and Ursa in darkness once more. Bo-Katan sighed. “We should go back.”

“Yes,” said Ursa. “Best not to keep that man waiting,” She reached out and took Bo’s hand in her own, intertwining their fingers. “We will find time to ourselves, later.”

Bo nodded, getting to her feet and tugging Ursa to hers. She looked over at the vast dome of Sundari, towering over the empty expanse of the Mandalorian desert. Her sister was in there, somewhere. She was supposed to love Satine and she failed. She prayed that she wouldn’t fail with Ursa too. 

With only the stars illuminating the brilliant white sand in front of them, the two women made their way back to their fighter, hand in hand.


End file.
